User blog:Psychomantis108/New Imperia: Zakariah
Intro: '''So I had a sudden burst of inspiration at 1:30 AM, yay! I wrote this based on a storyline that was done in Aubeanic Reign, the storyline that I hated so much that it put me off of writing for nearly a year. I decided to revisit it, exploring the emotional impact that it has on the characters involved. I'll warn you that this story revolves around themes and plot points that I wouldn't normally tackle, they more or less disgust me but I wanted to do them right. I felt inspiration that I hadn't felt for years doing this, so I don't exactly regret it. The piece takes place a few years after Aubeanic Reign ends, despite the fact that Tamriel was saved from annhilation many were enslaved or... worse as you'll find out. Despite doing everything in their power to undo the damage done, the world isn't back to the way it was yet... if that's even achievable. Zakariah is one of Telemachus Dion's many victims and he's set out to take his life back. ---- All was well at the Lesuin Manor, from what could be seen there were no disturbances of any kind. The weather was quite warm, mild humidity but a constant breeze made it more than tolerable. The Moon shone on the Mansion grounds below, thousands of stars above it twinkled with little to no care as to the current state of the world below. However, one star had a great deal of investment in this world, in the manor. He watched the High Rock Manor House from afar, crouched in the bushes, wrapped up in black shrouded armour, hidden under a long coat and fingerless woollen gloves, peering at it through a slit in his hood that allowed his red eyes to peer through. The Dark Elf’s fingers wiggled a little as an aura of flame built around them, almost like it was eager to escape. It was, his flames would soon engulf anyone foolish enough to stand in his way… He just had to wait for the right moment… “Been keeping track of their routine… Lesuin’s guards are creatures of habit, they stalk the grounds in a particular order so they don’t end up tripping over themselves. Somewhere in this charnel house of retarded butchers, Karliah and Baby Z await me. I saw her the other day, looked sad, don’t exactly blame her. She wandered around aimlessly, like she didn’t know what the shit was going on. Might be delirium from the heat, what kind of sick vindictive fucks would make a pregnant woman farm in the heat? What purpose does it serve? That guard… Don’t like the way he looks at her, he wants to fuck her, might’ve already done so. Least I don’t have to worry about him knocking her up, not that that is much of a comfort but… I don’t give a shit if you don’t think I’m ready, can’t afford to leave it any longer. I got myself a plan, so long as I stick to it, I’m fine! These bastards have no idea what they’re dealing with, believe me…” Zakariah paused as he noticed the two guards exchanging out front, this was the moment he was waiting for. He could defend himself from ten times this number but his pregnant, possibly injured wife would be another story. He had to worry about her first, revenge will come later… “Let’s get ‘em…” He growled, hopping over a muddy embankment and sliding down, his long coat dragged along the floor as he readied the flames in his hands, that burned around the outside of his woollen fingerless gloves. Zakariah eventually came to a stop and marched, confidently, towards the manor, the fires in his hands raged hotter than ever before as he approached the two guardsmen, narrowing his eyes. They backed away, drawing their blades but sadly, it was already too late for them as the Pyromancer extended both hands and quickly engulfed the two of them in hellfire, the power of which reduced them to a faint black outline as they performed the dance of the burning man and vanishing without a trace. Unfazed by any of it, Zakariah stepped through the flames and kicked the door open, striking it so hard that it swung open, smashing against the wall and bouncing off, chipping a large chunk off of the stone and sending a large crack through the center of the door. He stepped into the barracks, seeing a dozen startled guardsmen scramble to their feet in amazement, none of which had their armour or shields handy as they got ready to take on the seemingly mad invader. “Stop right there!” One of them yelled, drawing his sword but quickly finding himself engulfed in flame himself, like his two comrades out-front, the 5’7 Breton soon became the contents of an ash tray. As the flames died down, every sword in the room was drawn, grieves clinked and clanged all around the building as re-enforcements came but Zakariah didn’t fear them, he didn’t fear the entire house put together. “Alright you goat fucking rejects, I’m only going to ask this one fucking time… Where the '''fuck is my fucking wife!?” Before any of them could answer, the door was kicked open and two guardsmen came rushing in. Zak was quick to lift his hands as they ran forward, engulfing the three armoured men in flame, he had to roll aside, however, as they didn’t seem to slow down as a result of being on fire. Zak was quick to dodge them and noticed that their armour more or less made things worse as it was like they were being cooked from the inside. They each fell to the floor, landing face down with a heavy ‘clang’ as blood began oozing out of every joint and slit on the suit as it ran out of every orifice. Doing their best to stomach the overwhelming smell of burning flesh, every off-duty guardsman in the room charged at Zakariah, prompting him to place both hands on the floor and send out an infernal shockwave, that swiftly engulfed the room and its inhabitants in flame. Their screams were rapturous, like an orchestra, using several high notes, accompanied by the elegant twirls of a Lesuin guard as his entire being was engulfed by ravenous flames. The last of the corpses slowly fell to the ground, leaving Zakariah at the center, panting heavily as he too was knee deep in the flame but at this point, fire had stopped being a threat to him. He was its God, no God fears that harm will come to them, from the hands of one of their own zealots… Wading through the flames, Zakariah stepped out of the barracks and into the main hall of the mansion, panting heavily as the flames slowly burned away at his coat tails, gradually shortening it as it dragged through them. If these fuckers thought that he was slowing down, they were sorely mistaken. He was just getting started… ---- All it took was a trail of moans to lead him, he slowly wandered through the dungeon, a place where criminal filth or animals would’ve resided in the civilized world of old. The new world, the world of the fifth Era, believed that human beings, certain human beings, were fare game in places like this. Telemachus’ slave empire still lingered across Tamriel, though the Aube Dynasty declared it illegal, some nobles were appeased and were allowed to keep the many refugees they clapped in irons and forced to spend the few days they had left before the world ended working. If only he could burn this shit hole to the ground now, right now, he just had to follow the rather harrowing sound of his wife being raped by one of her captors, to lead her to him. Many wouldn’t think about what they were listening to but for Zak, it was his strength. His hatred kindled the flames in his heart, which projected out into his aura. The Pyromancer found himself stronger as his unquenchable thirst for vengeance gave him strength that most men dreamt of. Zak came to a stop as he heard an especially loud moan come from the next room, it sounded like whoever it was helping himself to her was finished… He slowly peered inside, seeing the crack of the Guards Arse slip back into his brown pants as he adjusted them, Zakariah’s hand clenched, trembling furiously as a black flame surrounded it… The man exhaled, stepping back and running his hand through his hair as he stumbled back, shaking his head with a smirk. “Glad you were a lot more obedient this time, didn’t even have to hit you. Seems you’re learning…” As he stepped back, he felt Zakariah’s gloved hand slip around his throat, the Dark Elf shoved him back against the stone wall, tightening his grip around his throat as he stared into the man’s eyes. The man was rather young and didn’t look like he needed to rape slaves in order to have such pleasures, he could probably pull a tavern wench or pay for a whore… but this wasn’t about that, this was a power thing or maybe it was a convenience thing. Nothing was going to justify what this loathsome fuck had just done, so speculation was pointless… The Man gasped for breath as Zakariah pulled a fist back, slamming his flaming knuckles straight into the man’s face. Three heavy blows, like three branding irons hitting rapist in the face at once, knocking head back against the harsh stone, dungeon wall behind him. He yelled for the first two times but found himself too dazed to yell the third time as a small amount of blood was left on the wall. The force of the punches looked fierce but Zakariah was holding back, he didn’t want the little cunt to get off that easily… The Pyromancer quickly pulled the man forward, throwing him down to the ground, straight to his knees, where he coughed and spluttered. “The fuck man, who… Whatever you want, just take it… Take it and go!” He yelled, he seemingly misunderstood that Zakariah was in the process of taking what he wanted and then he’d be more than happy to leave this shit hole behind… Or what was left of it… He held the man’s head in his hands, who struggled a little, wrapping his own large hands around the Dunmer’s gloves as thumbs were slid over his eyes and simply rested there, resting and slowly heating up. Within seconds the thumbs heated up to the extent that it gradually melted his eyeballs, the man shrieked horrendously, thrusting to simply try and get away as the two thumbs slivered inside his now vacant eye sockets, the mixture of blood half melted eye made for an excellent lubricant. Zakariah wasn’t exactly done though, now his hands heated up as well, engulfed in the black flames of hatred that caused the inside of the man’s head to sizzle as he began to scream. His head grew softer and softer, allowing the Zakariah to leave the indentations of his fingers in it as he tightened his grip, eventually digging his fingers into his softened skull and finally finishing him off by pulling his head apart, with as much force as possible, screaming in a fit of rage as his hands were bathed in the contents of the Breton’s head. He threw what was left of him aside, allowing his head to hit the floor with quite a bit of force, most likely resulting in what was left of his head to get even more beaten up by the impact. Zakariah cared nothing for him now though, satisfied with the kill, he quickly rushed over to his wife’s side, seeing that she was sat up on the table, pants around her ankles still, head hung and swaying from side to side. “Karliah?” He whispered, doing his best to meet her gaze as she blankly stared at the floor. He knelt down in front of her, in an effort to look her in the face. He saw how… tired and drawn out she looked. Her beauty had faded a little, her hair had been shaved off and the life in her eyes had gone as well. Had she been drugged? It seemed possible if the Guards were raping her and didn’t want any resistance. “C’mon Love, I’m here to take you home.” He whispered, rising to his feet and pulling her pants up to her waist, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her in close for an embrace, gently pressing his cheek against her forehead as he rubbed the stubble on the back of her head, it wasn’t the same as brushing her hair, smelling its radiant scent. He could see the room around him blurring as his eyes filled up with tears, he unashamedly let them escape, gently dripping onto his lover’s forehead as he rested his forehead against her’s. “I’m sorry… I’m sorry any of this happened to you, it’s been hell these past few weeks… just sitting here, waiting… can’t even imagine what you’ve been through.” He managed to pull away, kneeling down before her before checking his back to make sure that no one was sneaking up on him. He sniffed, rather furiously as he took her hands, lifting his hand to cup her chin and lift her head, hoping to look her in the face. The Torchlight was cast upon the upper part of her head as she was forced to lean forward, revealing an unusual amount of swelling and a few lines of stitches across her forehead, this got Zakariah to flinch in confusion as he simultaneously noticed her blank lifeless expression. “Karliah?” He whispered, holding her face in his hands as he forced her to look at him, he quickly reached up and ripped his mask off, revealing how burned his face was, he had the early signs of a beard showing around his scarred face, from where he’d not bothered to shave. “Say my name!” He yelled in her face, seeming frantic now, panicked, he shook her to try and get her attention, hoping to break the spell. If only this was a spell… “Say my name! Say my name!” he yelled, louder and louder, his voice breaking the third time he said it as tears freely cascaded down the creases in his face. “Karliah, you gotta know my name! In fact, fuck that just say something, say something! Any fucking thing, I don’t care, just say anything!” Karliah continued to stare ahead, it was almost like she was doing it on purpose to spite him but he knew that couldn’t be true. He shuddered, swallowing hard as he pulled her forward, burying her face into his chest. “I… I came here to free you…” He whispered, tightening his embrace around her. “That is… exactly what I’m gonna do…” Zakariah slowly drew his blade from behind his back, lifting it up to the back of her head, so that the tip of it was mere inches away… “I’m sorry… I failed you, failed you both. Please, forgive me, if there’s anythin’ left of you in there…” He paused, swallowing hard as he knew that he was kidding himself now, she was a husk, mindless, void of life… With a quick thrust, Zakariah ended his wife’s torment, creating the smallest incision possible in the lower part of her skull, killing her instantly. She jerked upward a bit as every nerve in her body shut down, moaning faintly in shock but eventually settled in his arms… Zakariah slowly lifted her body, she felt… oddly heavier than before. He closed his eyes and lowered her to the floor, gently placing her next to the remains of the man who raped her. He placed both of her hands over her chest as he stood up and backed away, sniffing heavily and dragging his sleeve over his eyes. He blinked furiously, swallowing a number of things back as he stepped away and eventually turned around. The Dark Elf left his child and wife in the Dungeon as he went back up to the surface, he had one thing left to do in this place, hopefully it would make up for his failure as a Husband and Father… ---- It was as if a volcano had formed out of the ground, every inch of land, previously occupied by the estate was now like a dark glowing rug, a black inferno that simmered along the floor. Mere minutes ago, it raged, thirty or so feet high but now it was but a mere ember, laying waste to what remained of the Mansion, a few pieces of foundation that jutted out of the ground, charred, beyond repair… Among them was a silhouette, that slowly rose out of the flames, engulfed in them but seemingly unscathed. He watched over his fiery lake at the very center of the blaze, pausing for a brief moment before marching through it once more. His flame proof shrouded armour was all that remained now, the woollen items of clothing quickly went up in flames. If his underclothes weren’t protected by enchantments, they would’ve suffered the same fate. Zakariah left the field of black fire, like a human candle, he marched with the flames still clinging to his body, to the point that the man underneath them couldn’t be seen. The ground beneath his feet was scorched as he took each step, seemingly without any encumberment from being consumed by the black flames. Like any spectre, Zakariah wandered off into the woods, leaving no trace of himself, his life, his lover or those who destroyed it all behind… Category:Blog posts Category:Stories Category:New Imperia